Visayas remains on power alert as DOE warns of more shortages

Local

DESPITE being part of an interconnected power grid, the Visayas continues to face a tight electricity supply, with the Department of Energy warning of more Yellow and Red alerts in the coming weeks.

House committee on energy chairman Jose Alvarez pressed the DOE for an immediate solution to the continuing power shortage, questioning why the region remains vulnerable despite its connection to the Luzon and Mindanao grids.

“Why can’t Mindanao plants supply? Why can’t Luzon supply?” Alvarez asked in a Philstar report.

Energy Undersecretary Mario Marasigan said the amount of electricity that can be delivered from Mindanao is currently limited by the simultaneous outages of several major power plants. Only around 50 megawatts can be transferred at present as several generating units remain unavailable.

He also pointed to the limited availability of conventional and baseload generation in the Visayas, particularly in Negros. According to Marasigan, the province has only one geothermal baseload facility, with much of its other generation coming from renewable sources such as solar

power.

Marasigan said the intermittent nature of renewable energy could further tighten supply when generating units are unavailable, adding to the challenges facing the regional grid.

For the DOE, the immediate priority is to coordinate with generation companies and restore plants that are currently offline. Marasigan stressed that bringing the unavailable generating units back into operation is crucial to easing the supply situation.

“What’s important is that the plants on outage are back,” he said in the same article.

However, Marasigan cautioned that the supply situation could remain tight in the coming weeks. Yellow and Red alerts may still be declared in the second and third weeks of October, indicating that the Visayas could continue to face periods of insufficient power reserves.(MyTVCebu)